Interview
by MirandaMinerva
Summary: DWP. Femslash. Miranda/Andrea. Humor tainted as usual .


This story takes place after the movie and follows my previous DWP stories. Miranda and Andrea have been together for about a year-and-a-half. Had this general idea for a ficlet playing in my head and finally put it down. Enjoy? (Lack of ownership of original characters is implied.)

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Andy was elated to hear she would get an audience with the Secretary of Health, Kathleen Sebelius. It turns out that the National Women's Law Center was having a convention next week, and Ms Sebelius was to give a presentation on the disparities in health care for women and the plans that the Department of Health and Human Services had set up to deal with these inequalities. After the presentation, the Secretary would do a series of interviews with several news organizations, and the _Mirror_ had won a lottery draw to be one of those organizations.

Andy left work early and met the girls at Dalton. Caroline seemed more excited than Cassidy when Andy shared the news.

"She's pretty smart. Remember, Cass? We met her at that dinner last year with the awful food."

Cassidy wrinkled up her nose and looked at her sister in despair. Andy briefly blinked in an attempt to prevent her eyes from rolling. Caroline sounded so very much like her mother. The pause lasted a moment longer.

"Oh, you mean the one where we did the experiments?" Cassidy looked at Caroline for verification, her eyes lit up with excitement. Andy bit her lip, trying not to laugh – or ask what 'experiments' they had been doing. Some things were better not to know about when it came to mischievous 13-year-olds.

Caroline barely nodded her head in the affirmative before Cassidy cried out again, "She looks like Mom!"

This time, Andy let out a laugh.

Cassidy nudged her, "She is smart, too, like Carrie said. You better not tell Mom about this. She might get jealous." Andy saw the devilish glint in Cassidy's eye and grinned back. Caroline gave a dramatic sigh and flopped back against the leather seat of the car. They finished the trip home in silence.

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"Hey, Andy."

"Heya, kiddo." Cassidy flew into the kitchen and jumped up on one of the bar stools to see what the young woman was doing. She watched in silence for a moment while Andrea placed a large roll of aluminum foil on the countertop and slid a plate with several fair-sized salmon fillets to the side.

"What smells so good? Like pie?"

"Did you finish the writing assignment for Social Studies already?"

"Of course."

"And your math problems?"

"Yes." There was an exasperated air in this answer.

"Mmmm. Okay."

"Would you like to look over my answers later?"

Andy looked up, smiling, "If you would like." Since Cassidy had been struggling with Math this year, it made sense to review her work.

"Only because it will make you happy. So, what's baking?" Cassidy knew better than to try and peek in the oven, knowing Andy would chastise her.

"Lemon Meringue. Would you like to help me prepare the salmon?"

"Really?"

"Sure. Grab an apron."

Half an hour later, the two of them were sitting hunched over Cassidy's math assignment at the bar area. The sound of the front door opening and the click of heels on the marble entryway brought both of their heads up.

Andy slipped up the back stairs to quickly change from her jeans into a pair of slacks before Miranda saw her. Meanwhile, Cassidy jumped down from her stool and scampered out, to be joined at the foot of the stairs by Caroline.

"Mum!"

"Darlings. How was school today?"

"Fine," they replied in unison.

"And why are you smiling like that, Bobsey?" Miranda reached out and gave the apron Cassidy was wearing a gentle tug.

Cassidy gave Caroline a superior grin. Usually their mother eschewed the wearing of an apron outside of the kitchen – especially since dinner preparations were complete and the apron could realistically have been removed already. Today, Cassidy had gotten away with it.

"We're doing a secret salmon recipe."

"Really?" Miranda turned and deposited her heels by the foot of the stairs, and dropped her purse on one of the entryway tables. The three Priestly females then proceeded down the hallway to the kitchen.

As they entered the room, Miranda's eye was immediately drawn to the table setting, while her nose deftly picked up the scent of salmon and…lemon.

"Were you making this fabulous salmon dinner on your own?" There was a sharp tone to Miranda's query.

Cassidy let out a sigh, "Yes. You caught me. I made dinner and dessert in a dangerous kitchen all by myself. Andrea was upstairs in the media room watching soaps and eating bon-bons."

"Cassidy Rebecca Priestly." Miranda's blue eyes hardened.

Caroline stepped in, "So, is it ready enough for us to wash up and eat?"

"Um, should be." Cassidy took a step back, putting a little more distance between her and her mother, straightening up the math papers sitting on the now vacant bar area. She then circled around the island, taking a glance at the running dishwasher, then the lemon meringue pie cooling on the far counter.

"And where is Andrea? And don't even dream of giving me the 'bon-bon' line again, young lady."

"I don't have a GPS tracker on her, Mom. How would I know where she is?"

"You are quickly moving towards the removal of privileges." Miranda's voice had dropped to that quiet monotone signaling imminent death.

"C'mon. Let's wash up." Caroline moved to the small guest bathroom just behind them, a few feet before the kitchen entry. Miranda and Cassidy stood eyeing each other, neither wanting to move first. After several seconds of stare down, Cassidy capitulated and went to clean up.

"What are you doing?" Caroline hissed at her sister as she passed her en route back to the kitchen.

"You'll see," Cassidy replied, cryptically.

When Cassidy re-entered the kitchen, her mother was standing at the wine refrigerator, mulling over the selection. She could hear her mother muttering to herself, and smiled at her ability to have her mom that irritated. As she went to sit down by Caroline at the table, her sister gave her a quizzical look.

"Just watch. You'll see."

At that moment, Andrea re-entered the kitchen from the back stairwell. She moved directly towards Miranda seemingly knowing where the woman was without having to look about the room.

When she was about two feet away, she stopped suddenly and turned silently in her stocking-clad feet to direct a harsh glare in the direction of the girls. She could hear Miranda's mumbling, and the tension was palpable. Caroline pointed immediately at Cassidy, who unabashedly shrugged her shoulders.

Andrea sighed, turned back to Miranda, and cleared her throat.

"Mmmm. Now who is this lovely woman in my kitchen? Care to stay for dinner? My wife isn't likely to get home until late." She reached out and placed her hands on either side of the older woman's hips.

Miranda stayed stooped over the fridge for a second before leaning her backside into Andrea. Andy slid her hands up Miranda's sides, enjoying the feel of the soft cashmere sweater under her fingers.

"May I recommend the Chilean Gertie? Second bottle down on the right side."

"Andrea. I see you like to butcher the name of wines as much as you like to butcher your own name."

"Oh. Is that how it is?" Andrea responded with a lilt as she gently tugged Miranda into a fully upright position, wrapping her arms around the other woman's waist. They stood there for a good minute before slowly, Miranda's tense frame relaxed a little. As soon as Andrea felt the shift, she moved her lips to drop gentle kisses along the skin between the neckline of the sweater and the small hairs at the nape of Miranda's neck.

Cassidy looked at her sister and whispered, "Catching on yet?"

Caroline rolled her eyes, "You are insane. You know that, right?"

"But its working. Now Andy can tell her and Mom won't get weird, 'cause I wore the fight out of her." Cassidy reached one hand over her head and pat herself on the back.

"Like you can predict Mom that well. Your ego is way too big."

Over at the wine fridge, meanwhile, Miranda had pulled out the Gewürztraminer that Andrea had recommended, against her own better judgment, pulled out the bottle opener, and popped the cork. Her sigh of anticipatory relief was audible even across the room as she poured two glasses of the pale wine.

When she turned to carry the glasses over to the table, her gaze fell on Cassidy, and she narrowed her eyes, but remained silent.

"Cassidy, since you still have your apron on, want to help me plate the salmon?" Andrea moved to the stovetop and pulled the lid off a steaming pot of rice. As she poured the rice into a serving bowl, she looked over at Miranda.

"So, I hear that the little documentary about the September issue might get a showing at Sundance in a couple of months."

"Yes, well, we shall see. I think it might give audiences the perception that I am single-minded of purpose. However, the film does a fairly decent job of showing the amount of work that goes into making _Runway_. I suppose I should be grateful for that."

As Miranda was talking, Andrea carried the bowl of rice to the table, along with the salad that she had prepared earlier. She returned to the island and assisted Cassidy in unwrapping the aluminum and held the platter close while Cassidy transferred the fillets to it.

"Good work. Why don't you slip that apron off and have a seat?"

"Can't I carry it over?"

"Sure. Let's just spoon some of this lemon butter on and there's some of the dill we left to the side for garnish."

"Cool." Cassidy drizzled the lemon butter over the fish, sprinkled on a few bits of dill, and then took the platter from Andrea, giving the young woman a look of confidence.

Once the platter was set down and the four of them seated at the table, Miranda looked over the spread again with a wary eye. A dinner such as this was a peace offering. For what, she didn't yet know. She reached for the salad and put a healthy serving in her own salad bowl before passing it to Andrea.

As they all quietly dished up and started eating, Miranda made a small sound of delight at the first bite of salmon.

"This is delicious."

"Split a piece of sourdough with me?" Andrea held out a small bit of the soft, white bread to her. Miranda took it, as it WAS only a small piece and its tang a suitable complement to the salmon. And, she had foregone the rice…

They all ate in silence for several minutes. The calm hum-drum routine of a family eating dinner.

"So, that article I did last month on health care reform earned me payback today."

"Its about time."

"Miranda," Andrea chuckled and gave the older woman a playful nudge with her shoulder.

"Its true. They completely undervalue your work. And you let them, I might add."

"Let's not go there." This time, under the table, Andrea placed a hand on Miranda's thigh, sliding down to the hem of the Editor's skirt, and pulling it up with a couple of fingers, allowing her fingertips to graze along the inside of the nearest thigh. She smiled to herself as she felt Miranda's body respond to her touch.

"So, what 'payback' did you get?" Miranda queried.

"Next week, the National Women's Law Center is in town for a convention. I get the interview a million journalists would die for." Andrea chuckled at her own joke. Miranda, however, turned her head and raised a skeptical eyebrow.

"Andrea, which interview would that be? Hillary? Michelle Obama?"

"Oh. Either of those would be good, but, no. Kathleen Sebelius is going to be there to talk about inequality in women's health care, and I get to interview her."

"Mmm. Well, that is…good news." Miranda paused, and Andrea felt the temperature drop a couple of degrees. She looked across the table at the girls, realizing that Cassidy had been correct after all. Miranda WAS jealous.

"You know," Miranda continued smoothly, "if you like, I can see if she is available for dinner while she is in town. That way, if you want to extend your interview-"

Andrea cut in, "Miranda, you know I can't do that. Interview her over a dinner with us. Unfair advantage."

"Mmm." Miranda picked at the remains on her plate, then reached for her wine glass.

"Besides, if we went out to dinner with her, I might get a little giddy on wine and accidentally feel up the wrong woman under the table."

The response to Andrea's comment was mayhem: Cassidy literally chortled. Caroline gasped and put her hands to her ears. Miranda, for the first time in her fully adult life, actually spewed wine in a very unlady-like, but thankfully minimal spray. Andrea smiled like a Cheshire cat.

Miranda recovered quickly, whisking her napkin off her lap and quickly dabbing at her mouth before turning fully on Andrea. Cassidy groaned, wondering how Andy could so easily ruin the perfect set-up she had laid out for her.

Andrea looked into the astonished blue eyes and threw down her Ace, "Of course, I think the best way to prep for the interview, and any possible dinner, would be to do a thorough investigative interview about equality with a woman who is powerful, intelligent, witty, has a great hairdo, and, of course, has a body that is the epitome of health and beauty. Then, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't confuse Ms. Sebelius for you at all."

She waited a beat, then finished, "What do you think?"

Miranda continued to stare at her, poker face on. Finally, she turned back to the table.

"Caroline, please remove your hands from your ears. You are a mature young lady and the conversation hasn't gone beyond PG-13. Cassidy, you will take the homework that I saw sitting on the bar counter and put it in your book bag on your way up to your room. After your behavior this evening, no television tonight."

With that, Miranda pushed back from her seat and stood up. As she moved to push her chair back in, she smirked at the contrite looks in her daughters' faces. Bending over to pick up her plate, she leaned in to whisper in Andrea's ear.

"I think I can arrange for that prep interview tonight, if you wish." She was rewarded by a sharp intake of breath.

"Does this mean no dessert?" Caroline moaned as her mother moved to the kitchen sink.

"Not for you."Miranda responded, evenly, her eyes on Andrea. The brunette felt the heat rise in her face.

"Oh, cuss." Caroline, seeing Andy's blush across the table, stood up and carried her and Cassidy's plates over as well.

The twins quickly left the room, Cassidy grabbing her homework as she went. Andrea could hear them chatting as they departed.

"How did you talking back to Mom help **us** any?"

"I didn't think Andy was going to be able to keep Mom from getting jealous without help. How did I know she would get all kinky?"

"It doesn't take much."

"Yeah. I forgot."

Miranda had now moved to Andrea's side as they listened to the girls' retreating voices.

"Mmm. Andrea. I don't know about this. Prep work for a health care interview with a kinky reporter?" The young woman shivered with delight at the undertones of desire and the feel of Miranda's warmth so close to her.

"Clean up and then meet me upstairs. Oh, and I suspect some meringue might come in handy." Miranda cast Andrea a backward glance as she moved towards the back stairs.

Andrea whispered, half to herself, "That's all—"

Suddenly, Miranda's head reappeared around the stairwell wall, "Certainly not. It's only the beginning." She smirked and disappeared from view again.

Andrea chuckled as she went about cleaning up from dinner with enthusiasm.

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Thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed. Cheers!


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